This post is the second half of our wedding day: part one!
I wanted to recap the day for the purpose of remembering as well as helping other brides with ideas for their own wedding day.
I believe there is such power in remembering back — on God’s faithfulness in our lives and on the gifts He has given. It reminds us of evidence of His goodness that then fills us with confidence of hope in current seasons of waiting and wondering.
I waited quite a while for this day and did my fair share of wondering what God was doing behind the scenes. But now I can confidently say that He was working behind the scenes, preparing and bringing all things together for His glory and my good.
I hope you will enjoy a few of my favorite memories from…
our wedding day {part two}
april 23, 2016
triunfo creek vineyards
agora hills, california
As we made our way back down the aisle, I remember thinking, “Never again… never again do I have to navigate the world of singleness and dating.” I felt like Noah stepping out onto dry ground after the flood.
Clay and I had a quick moment to pause together before our wedding party made their way over. I exhaled a sigh of relief in the arms of my groom, my husband, my forever love.
I absolutely love this photo. My sister walked with me down my long road of singleness and heartache, and this moment is pure joy, celebration and awe of all that God had done.
We signed our marriage document!
We took photos…
My sweet nephews and ring bearers.
We took these individual family photos before the ceremony before Clay and I saw each other. And I’m so glad we did because while I love having the ones with Clay and I together, the sun was shining quite brightly in our eyes.
We took some photos with our bridal party together and then some with just me and Clay.
I loved my headband from Twigs & Honey.
Some of my favorite photos were the candid/unplanned ones.
Meanwhile our guests enjoyed cocktail hour by the bar! I ordered these napkins from this Etsy shop.
Our specialty drink was of course margaritas — Clay’s and my fave!
Our guests also enjoyed wine from Trinfo Creek’s vineyard.
I strung some photos from our engagement shoot here with a quote hand-written by Hue Creative from Dustin Kensrue’s “Beautiful Things” that we used in our engagement video.
This lyric below from Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors is from one of my favorites and now sits on the wine rack in our kitchen.
Clay and I found these frames at a flea market here in LA. He strung the twine, I bought the mini clothespins, and Hue Creative beautifully hand-wrote each guests’ name along with their table number on the back.
The venue had these cute rustic wine barrels we used as cocktail tables.
The grand entrance was pretty epic. Our DJ announced each wedding party member as they entered the dance floor. The sunglasses party favors made for a fun touch.
Our upbeat grand entrance song gave way to our song — “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran. Clay is both sweet and silly and our first dance definitely represented both of those sides.
Next up: dinner!
We kept it simple with a burlap table runner and mason jar vases for the flowers.
I created these table numbers with tree stump holders from this Etsy shop.
Each member of the bridal party had their own name at their seat at the head table. I so wish someone had grabbed these name cards for me to keep, but alas they were lost in the clean-up shuffle. It was pretty fun to see my brand new name there.
We printed the menus ourselves and held them down with “prayer rocks” {explained in my mom’s toast} as it was a very windy day!
A friend of mine gave us this unique wedding gift: a framed lyric from one of Clay’s and my favorite bands–Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors. It now hangs on the wall in our house just above the “dirty dishes in the kitchen sink.”
As for the food, LA Roots did an amazing job with our family style meal. Head chef, Isaiah, delivered our meal to us on a custom branded wooden cutting board with our name and wedding date on it.
My mouth is watering at the thought of those loaded mashed potatoes!
My dad blessed the meal, I stole a kiss from my new husband–that was fun to say, and the celebration began.
Clay and I did our best to say hello to our guests, but unfortunately we didn’t make it quite all the way through. We did get to snap a photo with my Bible study and his.
Next up: toasts!
My sister and matron of honor gave a sweet and funny toast. She doubted I would ever find anyone “with all the criteria on my list” but admitted that “someone like that actually exists” in Clay.
Clay’s brother and best man gave a hilarious and heartwarming toast. I particularly love my facial expression here…
My little brother even gave a toast, which was such a sweet surprise.
Clay’s parents gave a wonderful toast.
And then my mom shared the story of the “prayer rocks.”
Long story short, each time she found herself praying outside, she would look down and find one blue rock with no others like it around. She grew to call them “prayer rocks.” When she began seriously praying for me to find a husband in January of 2015, not three weeks later I called her to tell her about a “boy named Clay.” One day while praying for us, she looked down and saw not only a blue prayer rock, but a heart-shaped one that she ended up using in a unique wedding gift she created for us — a cross held in by nails, a reminder of the love of Christ that holds us together.
Then it was time for dancing! I danced with my dad to Bob Carlisle’s “Butterfly Kisses” — cheesy song as it may be, it was our special thing when I was little. Clay danced with his mom, and then everyone joined in!
We cut the cake…
We chose a three-tiered cake from Frost It Cakery with layers of red velvet and vanilla as well as some mini chocolate cupcakes.
We had photos of both sets of our parents on their wedding day cutting their cake.
And my mom gifted us this cool wooden cake stand from an Etsy shop with our name and wedding date.
We gave a quick thank-you to our guests…
…did the bouquet + garter toss…
…and then I surprised my groom with a little song.
When Clay and I were dating, he told me Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space” was his “worst nightmare” so I rewrote the lyrics for him.
We had a pretty epic final song of the night to Walk the Moon’s “Shut Up and Dance.” Clay and I started it off with all our guests around us. And then everyone joined in.
That was definitely one of my favorite moments of the reception — all our friends and family together, on the dance floor, laughing and celebrating under twinkle lights and stars.
And then it was time for the sparkler send-off.
It was a perfectly-imperfect-real-life-fairy-tale-kind-of-day.
It was “a testament to God’s faithfulness” as a sweet friend put it.
It was only the beginning of the story God is telling through our lives.
And it was just a small reflection of the greatest wedding to come…
“Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready.
Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.”
– Revelation 19:6-8“‘Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high,
and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
It shone with the glory of God,
and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel,
like a jasper, clear as crystal.”
– Revelation 21:9-11“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life,
as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God
and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.
On each side the river stood the tree of life,
bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.
And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
No longer will there be any curse.
The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city,
and his servants will serve him.
They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
There will be no more night.
They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun,
for the Lord God will give them light.
And they will reign for ever and ever.”
– Revelation 22:1-5
You may watch our wedding video here.
All photos: Cameron Leung Photography.
